Studies in Hegelian Cosmology Book

STUDIES IN HEGELIAN COSMOLOGY STUDIES IN HEGELIAN COSMOLOGY BY JOHN McTAGGART ELLIS McTAGQART LITT. D. CAMBRIDGE, LL. D. ST ANDREWS, FELLOW AND LECTURER OF TRINITY COLLEGE IN CAMBRIDGE, FELLOW OP THE BRITISH ACADEMY AUTHOR OF Studies in the Hegelian Dialectic Some Dogmas of Religion, A Commentary on Hegels Logic. CAMBRIDGE AT THE UNIVERSITY PRESS 1918 PREFACE CHAPTERS V and VI of this book appeared, nearly in their present form, in the International Journal of Ethics. July 1896, and July 1897. The other chapters have not been previously published. In referring to Hegels works I have used the Collected Edition, the publication of which began in 1832. For purposes of quotation I have generally availed myself of Wallaces translation of the Encyclopaedia, of Dydes translation of the Philosophy of Law, and of Spiers and Sandersons translation of the Philosophy of Religion. I am much indebted to Mr G. L. Dickinson, of Kings College in Cambridge, and to my wife, for their kindness in reading this book before its publication, and assisting me with many valuable suggestions. The changes in the second edition are not numerous. When they are more than verbal, I have called attention to them in notes. j. E. MOT. September, 1917 TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION PAGE 1. Definition of Cosmology 1 2. Hegels attitude to Cosmology 2 3. The main principles illustrated in these Studies ... 3 CHAPTER II HUMAN IMMORTALITY 4. The problem of this Chapter ....... 4 6. Hegels own attitude towards Immortality .... 5 6. Apparently best explained by his indifference ... 5 7. The answer must depend on the Absolute Idea ... 7 8. Two questions arise. Are we among the fundamental differen tiations of the Absolute Is each of these differentiations eternal . 7 B 9. As to the first of these questions, firstly, What is the nature of the fundamental differentiations of the Absolute . . 8 10. Let us start from Hegels category of Life .... 9 11. The unity in this category is in the individuals but not in each separately . 10 12. Nor in the aggregate of them . . . . . .10 13. Nor in their mutual determination 11 14. The unity must be for each of its differentiations. Thus we get the category of Cognition 13 15. This gives us the relation we require ..... 14 Vlll TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE 16. We cannot imagine any example of the category of Cognition, except the concrete state of cognition. Dangers of this . 15 17. The validity of the transition to Cognition .... 15 18. Summary of the argument up to this point .... 17 19. Comparison with Lotze 17 20. Transition to the Absolute Idea 18 21. Nature of the Absolute Idea . . . . . . .19 22. But, though the fundamental differentiations of the Absolute are now proved to resemble selves, it is possible they may not be selves, or may not include our selves . . . .19 23. We must now endeavour to prove that our selves have charac teristics which they could not have unless they were funda mental differentiations of the Absolute ..... 20 24. No line can be drawn to separate the Self and the Not-Self . 21 25. The usual solution that the Self contains images of an external Not-Self is untenable . . 21 26. On the other hand, the Self has no content which is not also Not-Self 22 27. The nature of the Self is thus highly paradoxical . . 23 28. It need not therefore be false, but, if not, its paradoxes must be shown to be transcended contradictions . . . 23 29. In a system like Hegels it cannot be taken as false . . 25 30. And no demonstration that its paradoxes are transcended con tradictions can be found, except on the hypothesis that the Self is a fundamental differentiation of the Absolute . . 25 C 31. We now turn to the second question stated in Section 8. Are the fundamental differentiations of the Absolute eternal . 26 32. Can the selves change They are reproductions of the Absolute 27 33. Neither of the two elements of the Absolute can change . 27 34. Even if the selves could change, they could not perish . 29 35...Read More